Will Bill Ackman Be Able to Pull off a $90M Condo Flip at One57?
One57 and the view from the $90 million penthouse
It’s true that One57′s first flip saw a $3.5 million profit in just five months, but that unit sold for $34 million the second time around. A selling price of more than $90 million is a different story–and that’s exactly what hedge fund manager William (Bill) Ackman is hoping to achieve.
In a profile in the Times on Sunday, Ackman was revealed as the buyer of the $90 million penthouse at the luxury building, which is sure to see its share of flips. But he also shared that he has no intention of ever living in the apartment. He’ll stay with his wife and daughters at their current home in the Beresford and use the penthouse as a “fun” investment opportunity for himself and some good friends, perhaps hosting a few parties there in the meantime.
When the $90 million sale closes it will be the highest ever in Manhattan. The 13,500-square-foot duplex is named the Winter Garden for its curved glass atrium. It also features six bedrooms, eight bathrooms, and a panoramic view of Central Park. Ackman referred to the penthouse, sitting 1,000 feet in the air, as the “Mona Lisa of apartments,” citing that there will never be another like it. Known for his inflated ego and the high-profile, sometimes-risky investments made by his company, Ackman is the founder and CEO of Pershing Square Capital Management LP, which oversees more than $17 billion. He is personally worth about $1.7 billion.
In a Times piece today, his planned flip is referred to as “an uncommonly clear window into some of the deeper flaws of 21st-century finance,” as flips like this don’t create value or stimulate economic growth. Ackman is betting that in a few years this penthouse will be worth more than it is now, but until then, the unit sitting vacant is “destroying value” as its owners shell out money on maintenance fees and property taxes. But unlike typical rich-getting-richer deals, Mr. Ackman has made his plans here pretty clear, and as the Times notes, it’s “the clearest example you can find of a financier doing a deal that does nothing to make the economy better off.”
[Via New York Times]
[Related: One57′s First Flip Sees a $3.5 Million Profit Just Five Months Later]
[One57 at CityRealty]
